Elections 2018

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4,400-Year-Old Egyptian Tomb Discovered

The Egyptian government revealed the new discovery on February 3, noting that this tomb on the Giza plateau contains rare wall paintings.

Archaeologists have uncovered a 4,400-year-old Egyptian tomb that they believe belonged to a high-ranking priestess.

The researchers said that the tomb belonged to Hetpet, a priestess for the goddess Hathor. Often depicted as a woman with a cow’s head, Hathor is associated with fertility, music, love, among several other qualities.

They concluded this tomb belonged to Hetpet because it contained a purification basin engraved with her name and titles, the AFP reported. In addition, some of the tomb’s paintings depict Hetpet hunting, fishing, or interacting with children.

“The tomb is in very good condition,” said Mostafa Waziri, the secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, according to the New York Times.

This past weekend, archaeologists announced the discovery of a long-lost 4,400-year-old tomb, complete with some particularly rare dancing monkey murals.

Hetpet’s tomb stands in the Saqqara necropolis, a famous burial ground for the Ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis. The necropolis contains many of the tombs of top Egyptian officials during the Old Kingdom’s Fifth Dynasty, which lasted from about 2465 to 2323 B.C.E.

The Antiquities Ministry said that Hetpet’s tomb matches the Fifth Dynasty’s style and architecture. It also contains a rare paintings of a monkey dancing in front of an orchestra, further tying the tomb to the Old Kingdom.

“Such scenes are rare … and have only been found previously in the [Old Kingdom] tomb of ‘Ka-Iber,’ where a painting shows a monkey dancing in front of a guitarist not an orchestra,” Waziri told AFP. Ka-Iber’s tomb, too, is located in Saqqara.

4,400-Year-Old Egyptian Tomb Discovered

The Egyptian government revealed the new discovery on February 3, noting that this tomb on the Giza plateau contains rare wall paintings.

Archaeologists have uncovered a 4,400-year-old Egyptian tomb that they believe belonged to a high-ranking priestess.

The researchers said that the tomb belonged to Hetpet, a priestess for the goddess Hathor. Often depicted as a woman with a cow’s head, Hathor is associated with fertility, music, love, among several other qualities.

They concluded this tomb belonged to Hetpet because it contained a purification basin engraved with her name and titles, the AFP reported. In addition, some of the tomb’s paintings depict Hetpet hunting, fishing, or interacting with children.

“The tomb is in very good condition,” said Mostafa Waziri, the secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, according to the New York Times.

This past weekend, archaeologists announced the discovery of a long-lost 4,400-year-old tomb, complete with some particularly rare dancing monkey murals.

Hetpet’s tomb stands in the Saqqara necropolis, a famous burial ground for the Ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis. The necropolis contains many of the tombs of top Egyptian officials during the Old Kingdom’s Fifth Dynasty, which lasted from about 2465 to 2323 B.C.E.

The Antiquities Ministry said that Hetpet’s tomb matches the Fifth Dynasty’s style and architecture. It also contains a rare paintings of a monkey dancing in front of an orchestra, further tying the tomb to the Old Kingdom.

“Such scenes are rare … and have only been found previously in the [Old Kingdom] tomb of ‘Ka-Iber,’ where a painting shows a monkey dancing in front of a guitarist not an orchestra,” Waziri told AFP. Ka-Iber’s tomb, too, is located in Saqqara.